The Detour

The Detour is sharply written--Jones and Bee co-wrote the pilot--and uses flashbacks to help progress storylines. It’s dark at times, and, at other times completely and hilariously over the top.

The Detour isn’t always in full command of its absurdities, but the killer lines keep coming.

Even with the occasional fits and starts, The Detour looks like one of those shows that’s worth going out of one’s way to find.

The Detour is the kind of show that is best consumed in extended viewing. Individually, its episodes can seem slapdash and gratuitously crass. But there’s a theme beneath the ribaldry, one that may leave you pondering just how much you really know about that person sitting or sleeping next to you.

I can't say I have completely made up my mind myself, though on balance I'm more yea than nay, and the series' intelligent dopiness is something of a going style in comedy. Certain things do strike me odd.

Unfortunately, The Detour too often confuses the obvious for the outrageous, and mistakes hacky-ness for hilarity.

Since the setup feels more like a movie than a full-blown series, The Detour tries to create a more layered story by introducing an overarching plot about Nate (Jones) losing his job, stealing prototype material, and being part of a federal investigation. It’s as wackadoodle as the rest of the story, and lands just about as unevenly.